The recent shift from analog FM radio to DAB/DAB+, cable, satellite and streamed internet radio (IP-radio) means that listeners invest in different devices for different types of audio transmissions. Attempts have been made to produce devices which are capable of receiving audio content from different types of transmission sources; however, these devices essentially simply combine two or more standard devices into one.
Users who have invested in expensive media playing equipment such as a high quality FM tuner and amplifier are naturally reluctant to move to a new and unfamiliar system in order to receive the same or similar content via internet, cable, the internet, or using a satellite receiver, for example.
The traditional FM (or AM) receiver is simple to use. Decades of development have ensured that channel selection is an intuitively simple operation, suitable for use by even the least technically-minded radio listener. The user can tune the device to the frequency of a desired radio station by, for example, rotating a knob or pressing “up” or “down” buttons until the desired station frequency is reached. Alternatively, frequencies can be programmed and selected by pressing one of a number of preset-station buttons. Such a radio receiver may also have a display for indicating the frequency to which the radio is currently tuned. The display helps the user to find the desired station quickly. It may be a digital numerical display, for example, or a linear scale with a cursor which is moved along the scale. Because radio receivers have undergone a century of development by many manufacturers in many countries, the technology has become largely standardized, and the functionality of devices, the broadcast frequency ranges and the terminology vary little from manufacturer to manufacturer, or from country to country, so that most users are familiar with the technology and are able to operate different devices without difficulty.
By contrast, the reception of digital audio via cable, satellite or internet, for example, requires the use of new and varied devices, each with a different way of selecting channel(s) to which a user may listen. Devices which are available for receiving internet audio streams, for example, may be more complicated and less intuitive to operate than a traditional radio receiver, partly because of the difficulty of managing the vast numbers of channels available on the internet, and partly because the technology is still relatively young and the various approaches have not yet been standardized. Reference must usually be made to a server which provides an index of available internet radio stations, together with connection information (IP address, etc.) and some information about each station. User interfaces for managing the configuration and station-selection operations can also be complex.
Digital radio stations are often available bundled with digital television channels, via cable, satellite or over the internet. In order to listen to such radio stations, the digital TV receiving device such as a “set-top box” must be switched on. In some cases, the television must also be on. This is very inconvenient for the user. Further, while is often possible to connect the set top box to a high fidelity (hi-fi) system, either with cables or wirelessly, this still may not solve the problems of poor usability and increased complexity.
Further limitations and disadvantages of conventional and traditional approaches will become apparent to one of skill in the art, through comparison of such systems with some aspects of the present invention as set forth in the remainder of the present application with reference to the drawings.